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12.7Game Day Anti-Patterns
| Anti-Pattern | Why It Is Harmful | Instead Do |
|---|---|---|
| "Gotcha" exercises | Surprises breed resentment, not learning | Always pre-announce game days |
| Blame-focused reviews | Discourages participation in future exercises | Run blameless retrospectives |
| No follow-through on actions | Team loses trust in the process | Track and report on action item completion |
| Only testing happy paths | "Kill one pod" every time teaches nothing new | Escalate scenario complexity over time |
| No observers | Participants cannot accurately self-assess during stress | Assign a dedicated observer/facilitator |
| Game days only in staging | Staging does not represent production | Graduate to production as the team matures |